Nevada Casinos Up 2.8% To $10.7 Billion In 2011

The Nevada Gaming Control Board has released its financial results for the state’s casinos in December, 2011, revealing a 2% increase in revenue to $855.7 million compared to the same month last year.
The Las Vegas Strip usually accounts for around half the revenue generated statewide, and in December it was up by 3.6% to $518 million. Also rising was Reno up by 11.8% to $41.7 million; Elko County up 12%; South Lake Tahoe up 6%; and Carson Valley area up 4.9%.
By contrast, Downtown Las Vegas was down 10.7%, North Las Vegas down 11.3%; Laughlin down 8.3%; and the Boulder Strip down 7.4%.
In total, however, gambling taxes collected for Nevada as a whole had increased by 6% to $31.8 million, compared to December 2010.
Statewide, Nevada gambling revenue was up by 2.8% to $10.7 billion for 2011 compared to last year, which is the largest annual improvement since 2007. Commenting on the encouraging figures,  Michael Lawton from the Gaming Control Board, said:
“The recovery is much broader, which is what we have been waiting to see happen. It’s not a double-digit recovery, but it’s steady.”
In 2011, The Las Vegas Strip gaming revenues was up 5.1% to $6.068 billion, which is the first time the $6 billion threshold had been passed since 2008. Throughout Nevada, casino slots wagering was up by 1.5%, while table games increased 5.2%, and breaking the figures down further, Michael Lawton said:
“When we analyze these numbers I think what we can take away from the calendar year is that it’s not robust growth, it’s small growth but it’s a lot broader growth than what we experienced last year (2010). Last year the only major market to post an increase was the Strip, which basically caused Clark County to post an increase. But this year in Southern Nevada the only market to have a decrease was Laughlin, which was down 3.7 percent.”